Just one-out-of-two Americans now say their home is worth more than what they still owe on their mortgage.

A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that just 50% of U.S. homeowners say their house is worth more than still owe on it. That’s little changed a month ago, but down from 61% in December 2008.

Perhaps the most stunning data point is that even among people who bought their home more than five years ago, just 52% believe their home is worth more than the mortgage. Among those who purchased a home three to five years ago, 64% think they owe more than it's worth.

Overall, 36% of all homeowners now believe their home is worth less than the mortgage. That’s up five points from a month ago and ties the highest level of pessimism recorded. Since the financial meltdown began in the fall of 2008, the number who say their house is worth less than what they still owe has run in that same period from 28% to 36%.

Another 14% are not sure about whether their home is worth enough to cover the mortgage. (To see survey question wording, click here.)

These findings add to an already gloomy housing picture. Both short and long-term confidence in the U.S. housing market continue to fall, with homeowners now expressing the highest level of pessimism in two years. Just 15% expect the value of their home to go up this year, while 33% expect a decline.

The survey of 709 Homeowners was conducted on April 14-15, 2011 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 4 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.

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